Read with an open mind and a critical eye - Evaluating sources - Research

Rules for writers, Tenth edition - Diana Hacker, Nancy Sommers 2021

Read with an open mind and a critical eye
Evaluating sources
Research

As you begin reading the sources you have chosen, keep an open mind. Do not let your personal beliefs or an initial working thesis statement prevent you from listening to new ideas and opposing viewpoints. Be curious about the wide range of positions in the research conversation you are entering. Your research question should guide you as you read your sources (see p. 366).

READING LIKE A RESEARCHER

To read like a researcher is to read with an open, curious mind, to find out not only what has been written about a topic but also what is missing from the research conversation.

Read carefully. Read to understand and summarize the main ideas of a source and an author’s point of view. Ask questions: What does the source say? What is the author’s central claim or thesis? What evidence does the author use to support the thesis? What are the strengths of the source?

Read skeptically. Read to examine an author’s assumptions, evidence, and conclusions and to pose counterarguments. Ask questions: Are any of the author’s arguments or conclusions problematic? Is the author’s evidence persuasive and sufficient? Does the author make leaps in logic? Note how and why you agree or disagree with an author.

Read evaluatively. Read to judge the usefulness of a source for your research project. You may disagree with an author’s argument or use of evidence, but refuting the author’s ideas will help you clarify your position. Ask questions: Is the author an expert on the topic? Will the source provide background information, lend authority, explain a concept, or offer counterevidence for your claims?

Read responsibly. Take time to read the entire source and to understand its author’s arguments, assumptions, and conclusions. Avoid taking quotations from the first few pages of a source before you understand whether the ideas are representative of the work as a whole.